Transformers: Dark of the Moon may be the latest movie tie-in, but it's also the follow-up to last year's excellent War For Cybertron, which served as a compelling prequel to the long-running Transformers saga. The latest video game is also a prequel of sorts, but to the new movie, which was released in cinemas a little over a week ago.

Unfortunately, just as the video game series appeared to be outperforming its silver-screen counterpart in terms of quality, Dark of the Moon takes a massive step backwards, offering clumsy and repetitive gameplay, dull level design and a weak storyline.

The game takes place three years after the events of Revenge of the Fallen, and sees players control both Autobots and Decepticons in various locations throughout the world. The game features lots of references to plot strands from the latest movie, although it doesn't offer enough additional information to make it compulsive playing. Hardcore fans might get a kick out of knowing what preceded the most recent Hollywood blockbuster.

The levels generally involve exploring facilities and other points of interest in an attempt to extract information about the enemy's plans, although it never really feels like it's going anywhere until you arrive at Megatron's lair later on in the game. The levels are initially quite colourful and visually appealing, but become increasingly dull and drab as the game wears on, involving little more than roaming grey corridors and clearing out large rooms of enemies. It's also slightly po-faced, failing to replicate the humor found in the movie franchise.

The gameplay is a blend of third-person shooter and vehicular combat. It doesn't contain the team-based element found in War For Cybertron, although many would agree that this is probably a good thing. The controls are generally quite solid, even though there is plenty to do and remember. Players are able to transform with the click of a button, and can race around locations with increased speed by holding the right trigger, essentially giving each robot three forms. The gun play is fairly enjoyable and can be quite exciting when there are waves upon waves of robots to destroy.

There's very little reason to transform out of stealth mode, however, because the vehicle-based form affords players extra protection from attacks and offers more powerful ammunition, without the need to reload. The developers have countered this by disabling it from time to time, which is a smart move to inject a little more variety.

Speaking of variety, each level contains a new Autobot or Decepticon to control, but - with the exception of Starscream - there's little to choose between them apart from some different abilities and slight vehicle variations. This unfortunately leads to an incredibly repetitive game, which starts to grow stale after the first couple of chapters.

The game is also incredibly short and there is little incentive for a second play-through, other than a few missed achievements/trophies. There are seven chapters in total, each of which can be bested in little more than 20 minutes if players know what they're doing. There are times, however, when levels take a lot longer than they should because of cheap, avoidable deaths thanks to the occasionally dodgy camera and a lack of cover.

Alternatively, the developers have seen fit to include a series of unnecessarily long and drawn out sequences between save points, which means that it's back to square one when the inevitable occurs - a bit of a curmudgeonly way to extend the lifespan of the game.

A particularly irksome sequence involves Laserbeak in chapter IV. Shut out of an underground facility, Soundwave sends the miniature, winged Decepticon through a small opening to collect data and unlock the entrance door. Instead of a quick flying segment to break up the action, however, players must traverse the entire (or what seems like it at least) underground facility as the awkward-to-control and much weaker Laserbeak. It's undoubtedly one of the most irritating and frustrating levels I have ever come across, and it would have worked so much better as a collection of short flying segments, with the action switching between Laserbeak and Soundwave in short bursts.

The controls can also be the source of a great deal of frustration. Once again, transforming is achieved by clicking the left analogue stick, which is far too sensitive and often sees the robots switching forms by accident. This is particularly problematic during boss fights (especially the final encounter), when players spend a lot of time circling the enemy and dodging. It doesn't always lead to death, because the robots are a lot more resilient in vehicle mode, but it will throw you off your stride, especially if you were lining up that perfect shot.

The camera is also an issue, becoming more and more of a hindrance as the game goes on. Later levels take place in much more restricted, corridor-based environments, which is typically a recipe for disaster in any third-person shooter. But it's particularly unhelpful when you're in control of something the size of a whopping great truck. The camera occasionally drops beneath the player, making it difficult to line up a shot, leading to more unnecessary deaths.

Transformers: Dark Of The Moon is a frustrating and unremarkable video game experience. The game never really goes above and beyond the call of duty, offering only mildly attractive locations, bog-standard third-person gameplay and a relatively insignificant plot. This is in stark contrast to last year's offering which seemed to be moving the franchise in the right direction and proves that with enough time, the development team is capable of producing a game that does the Transformers name justice.

For all of its flaws, Transformers: Dark Of The Moon retains its predecessor's fundamental gameplay mechanic, and is therefore likely to offer short-lived thrills for hardcore fans of the movie and video game franchise.